Definitely one of the more interesting and successful volumes in the Object Lessons series. It explores the history, significance and universality of collecting souvenirs on our travels - it appears that as far back as the pilgrimages travellers have always felt the need to take something tangible back home with them. In fact that’s how the first museums began – with people collecting and bringing home mementos of their travels and putting them in cabinets of curiosities to show to their family and friends. The author discusses issues of authenticity and cultural appropriation and apart from an annoying stylistic tic of calling the usually useless things we but “tchotchkes” with tedious regularity does so in a thought-provoking and informed way. And unlike some of the other books in the series, there’s not a smidgen of pretentiousness or self-absorption to be found.

I read Rolf Potts' Souvenir whilst on holiday, as it seemed a fitting tome to absorb whilst travelling. I have enjoyed the couple of books from the Object Lessons collection which I have read thus far, and I was quite looking forward to this one.

In a way, Potts' essay is a souvenir guidebook of sorts, not a rundown of which items to collect, or where to get them from; rather, it is an exploration of why we seek out such objects as mementoes when we travel, what they have represented to travellers in past ages, and how we use them to narrate our lives. The interesting history of souvenir collecting is also set out here.

Unlike in Veil and Luggage, two other particularly enjoyable books in this collection, there are no profound ideas here. Whilst there are certainly some areas of interest in Souvenir, I did not find it wholly engaging, and some sections were far easier to read than others.

Souvenir presents an incredibly fascinating look into society’s long-held obsession with, you guessed it, souvenirs. I know, I know, it seems like an incredibly specific thing to study but, as I have found whilst reading my first in the series of books that look at the hidden lives of everyday things, this minuscule part of modern society lends itself to far larger insights into wider themes of human behaviour, both in its personal and social forms. And once a person learns how far back the activity of souvenir gathering goes, it is easy for posit how the ritual almost seems to be ingrained in some way in the human psyche.
The need of early Christian pilgrims to gather the sand beneath Jesus’ cross. Founding Father Thomas Jefferson cutting chunks from Shakespeare’s chair.
No matter where in the world you look, throughout the ages humans have tried to document their travels through the collection of artefacts, meaningful or otherwise, in an attempt to prolong the emotions of the experience. Rolf Potts explains this in detail, referencing his own extensive souvenir collection, which he manages to weave in with wider societal attitudes in a way that thankfully does not come off as clunky or out of place.
Honestly, I did not realise the amount of joy I would get out of reading about a subject so specific and ordinary and that, my friends, is why this book will not be my last in the Object Lessons series.

“In French, the word souvenir is commonly used as a verb, and means ‘to get back to myself,’ or ‘to remember.’ People have brought home travel mementos since 2200BC when an Egyptian prince brought back leopard skins and elephant tusks to present to the pharaoh. Potts writes a lovely ‘little book/ essay/ musings’ on souvenirs, both entertaining and informative. 

 ‘Piece of the rock’ souvenirs are physical fragments of the destination. Potts tells a humorous story about pilgrims taking ‘Jesus touched’ dirt off the sanctuary floor and church caretakers hauling new dirt back in. Latin emperors of Constantinople sold a chunk of the 'True Cross' to pay off debts or pawned the crown of thorns to fund a war against the Bulgars. Sometimes relics were even labeled, “soil drenched with the Blood of Christ.” That’s why I’m a cynic with that stuff. 

Wealthy travelers collected worldly curiosities (ostrich eggs, a whale jawbone, a stuffed crocodile) meant to impress visitors. In 1715 Richard Boyle brought home 878 pieces of luggage from his year long continental journey. Some items from travels like these eventually ended up in the British Museum for others to learn from and enjoy. 

As travel became more affordable, souvenirs became more mass produced. Postcards emerged in the late nineteenth century. Like most mass-produced souvenirs, they are   cheap, mobile, self-contained, and easy to collect – like souvenir spoons. The US souvenir and gift market generates $19 Billion of revue a year. That’s a lot of kitsch. 

“When we collect souvenirs, we do so not to evaluate the world, but to narrate the self.” Potts’ short, charming book illuminates our trinkets, treasures, and memories. Since we were children, collecting objects was a way to familiarize “ourselves with the world, its possibilities and our place in it.” 

Thank you to NetGalley, the author and publisher for granting access to an arc of this book for an honest review.

A short meditation on why we collect the things we do. It was heartbreaking to read how treasures of historical and literary significance were harmed so that people could take a piece of them home.

Souvenir by Rolf Potts is a free NetGalley ebook that I read in early March.

Arranged chronologically, Souvenirs can be goods created on the spot, miniatures, or sometimes pieces of important, sometimes garish/traumatic monuments and locations (often in acts of secretive vandalism). Potts also speaks of the cheapening of souvenirs over time and them being useful versus decorative.

A very interesting book covering the history and psychology of souvenir collecting (as distinct from collecting for museum collections, etc.) from antiquity until now, pinned around the author's collection and his feelings about it. Really well done, interesting and readable. 

I'll be submitting a long form review to Shiny New Books on this one and will link to my review when I do.

This is the first book I have read in the Object Lessons series but I will be looking for more. The whole premise of the book is fascinating. The book itself seems very well researched and is written in an engaging style.  (It originally caught my eye because the souvenir on the cover is one I brought home from Paris.)
My thanks to NetGalley for providing me with an eARC in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you to Bloomsbury Academic for providing me with an advance copy of Rolf Potts' book, Object Lessons: Souvenir, in exchange for an honest review.

PLOT- Object Lessons is a short non-fiction book series, where different authors explore the history and meaning of ordinary objects. In this installment, Rolf Potts explores souvenirs.

LIKE- This is my second book in the Object Lessons series. Last week, I read Susan Harlan's Luggage. Perhaps it was the subject manner, but I was much more engaged in Potts' Souvenir, than I was in Harlan's Luggage. These books are relatively short and I was so throughly entertained by Souvenir, that I raced through it in a single sitting.

Potts writes about the concept of souvenirs through the ages; Christian pilgrims searching for relics or how in war, physical pieces of the enemy were kept as tokens. One rather grizzly and disgusting mention was of soldiers who would take their enemies teeth and have their own rotten tooth replaced with the one they captured. That's a fact that I won't soon forget.

Taking physical pieces of important objects has destroyed many great monuments and artifacts. Potts writes about how it was so common in the 1800's to take a piece of Plymouth Rock, that local businesses sold chiseling tools for those who had forgotten to bring their own. Eventually, the rock was so damaged, that it had to be fenced off. I was shocked to read that during a visit to Shakespeare's home in Stratford-Upon-Avon, Thomas Jefferson and John Adams took a slice of wood out of a chair that the Bard had supposedly sat on. If you visit Jefferson's home, Monticello, you can see his stolen piece of wood. 

Why do we collect the things we do? Why is it important to buy cheap reminders of our travels? Potts speaks about how as children, souvenirs are an important form of identity. They are ways that a child shows what they admire or where they might want to travel later in life. When I was a kid, we went to Hawaii every year. This was great, but we never traveled anywhere else. I filled my room with pieces of other states and countries given to me by friends who had traveled there. In high school, I was obsessed with wanting to travel to New Orleans     (Thanks Anne Rice) and anything New York, so my room was filled with Mardi Gras masks and Broadway Theater posters. I still haven't been to Louisiana and it's still high on the travel bucket list.

Potts writes about the type of things people collect. Some people collect cheap, physical objects, like a miniature Eiffel Tower, where as other people seek out objects that feel more authentic, like a food item or textile manufactured locally. Souvenir will make you think about your own collecting habits. It will make you reflect.

Until my mid-twenties or so, I fell into the cheap, physical object category. Shopping was a vital part of my tourism experience. I wanted to return home with my suitcase filled with stuff. I vividly remember this from my trips to Walt Disney World. I spent hundreds on souvenirs. In 1999/2000, I went nuts for Disney Pins. Pin trading was a big deal, but I wanted to have them, more than I wanted to trade them. In just a few years, I bought thousands. It's mortifying to admit. Now, they are collecting dust in a box somewhere. They are pretty pins, but they certainly don't reflect my memories of my travels. They are completely unimportant, almost a burden.

My need to own and collect has changed dramatically. In the last six years, I've been to several countries in Europe for the first time and I've hardly bought any souvenirs. I've savored the experience and taken pictures, rather than feeling the need to own objects from every place that I visit. 

There are a few exceptions. We usually spend a few dollars on a magnet. It's a joy to look on our fridge and remember all of our travel experiences. If I find a local bookstore, I will buy a book written by a local author. This is mainly to support local writers/booksellers, but I love how this also has a way of extending our vacation, especially if the book is set in the same location of where we traveled. I also seek out books, primarily novels, about the place where we are traveling, before we go. I'm not precious about these books, I pass them along to a new reader as soon as I'm finished.

I will also buy food items or fragrances. This is my favorite way of extending our vacation and sharing our experiences with others.  It's a temporary souvenir, but one that I savor. Enjoying cheese from Amsterdam or Victoria Plum jelly from England on a sunny day in California, takes me right back to Europe. It's time travel.

DISLIKE- Nothing. Object Lessons: Souvenir is a thoughtful and entertaining book.

RECOMMEND- Yes! Object Lessons: Souvenir is a great read for anyone who loves to travel or collect. It's engaging and thought-provoking. It will make you examine your own tourism and collecting habits. I look forward to reading more books in the Object Lessons series.

3.5. I enjoyed reading this book and found the premise interesting and engaging. This is more of a “dip in and dip out” book. It feels very well researched and will make me think about the souvenirs I encounter on my next trip.

In this volume belonging to the Object Lesson series, the author focuses on all the souvenirs, providing also an historical perspective about the first relics that religious pilgrims used to take home.

The short book faces the theme from the market point of view - souvenir kind and tourist requests - keeping into account also the industrial replicability and the tourist psychology, who wants both to keep memory of a travel or an experience, and something that reflects the location history (e.g. to confirm that exotic places are inhabited by savages).

I think Souvenir is one of the most interesting book of the series because of the way the topic was dealt with.

Thanks to the publisher for providing me the copy necessary to write this review.

This is my first read from the 'Object Lessons' series, which I have been meaning to get to for some time. What an absolute delight this little book was. While it confirmed some of my own thoughts around keepsakes, souvenirs, and mementos, it also made me consider my personal psychology around acquiring/collecting these throughout my life.

I enjoyed the structured way that Potts took us from how the evolution of travel and tourism changed the way travelers and tourists viewed and identified with souvenirs to his own journey of collecting them during his sojourns. Some of his revelations, like souvenirs people collected during lynchings in 19th and early-20th century America, are horrifying and made me wonder about similar souvenir traditions in other earlier societies that we may not know of due to a lack of records.

I do wish he would have gotten to non-Western societies and their particular souvenir rituals sooner than the last quarter of the book — where he did a lovely job of going into the Japanese tradition of omiyage. Also, I wish he had taken a bit more time toward the end to explore how social media has replaced, at least among millennials, the souvenir tradition. Certainly, I see more and more people sharing travel photos on Instagram and Facebook than bothering to lug souvenirs home.

All that said, I do highly recommend this book and look forward to reading more from this particular series.

‘Souvenir’ is classed as an educational book, a short lesson. I like the idea of this and it was a lovely little lesson indeed. When you actually look at what souvenirs are, as Rolf Potts does in this book, it's actually a really strange notion! When we go on holiday or away somewhere memorable, we pick up something to take a part of that experience back with us. Potts looks at why we do this. The enhancement of a memory, even when it's kitsch tat from a gift shop in Paris which is nowhere near the Eiffel Tower! Little bits, nicknaks, reminders that ultimately (unless they get put on the fridge) are stored away and never used! A wonder is whether this notion will change over time, now we have phones to take photos and videos? Even as far back as the Egyptians (who travelled to Sudan) bought souvenirs from their travels, the Greeks and Romans manufactured them, early religious pilgrimages allowed a chance to purchase them. This book is a journey through time, a history lesson and a look into the human psyche all in one. An educational book from a series, for anyone looking to learn a little about everyday objects in our lives and their significances to us.

Everyone has at least one souvenir sitting on a shelf or hanging on a wall. Why do we buy them? What do they represent? How did the practice start? All these questions and more are answered in this cute little information-packed book.

There are three types of souvenirs discussed in Souvenir: physical fragments, local products, and pictorial images (i.e., postcards, t-shirts, keychains, shot glasses and tiny Eiffel towers). Beginning with Christian pilgrims taking a bit of the dirt where Christ walked to Thomas Jefferson peeling a chunk of wood off Shakespeare’s chair, physical fragments began the search for souvenirs. Demand for local products has benefitted cathedrals to African tribes. It has also promoted world trade and knock-offs as varied as shrunken heads made from monkeys, fake hangman’s rope and “Australian” boomerangs made in Bali. How the age of email and the selfie has impacted pictorial image sales is addressed within Souvenir too.

In addition to what is used for souvenirs, Souvenir suggests the various reasons that souvenirs are acquired. Both history and culture are explored.

A fascinating discussion on an overlooked subject. Souvenir is a great book to read before a trip especially on an airplane, train or cruise ship. 4 stars!

Thanks to the publisher, Bloomsbury Academic, and NetGalley for an advanced copy.

As an avid collector of souvenirs myself, I was intrigued by the concept of this book. Many of the anecdotes and historical facts presented make for interesting reading. However, it is not a book you just pick up and go with. In some places, I felt that the minute details given were unnecessary and led my mind to wander. But over all, it is an interesting read.

Rude and disrespectful....and dreadful writing...While the premise was very interesting and the information provided was beyond exciting, I couldn't get past the writer's ironic tone. In a poor effort to appear spirited and funny, he came across as condescending and disrespectful to the people and the countries he chose to write about. The fact that he doesn't believe in any religion is all well and good, but it doesn't give him the right to make fun of the ones who do. His comments on pilgrimages and the Holy Lands were unacceptable. As a result, I was unable to finish the book and I would advise him to get off his high horse...

Well researched, incredibly detailed and well written. The philosophy of why people collect souvenirs is explained and referenced with facts from history. The chapters are structures around the authors actual souvenirs, which makes for an interesting insight. I really liked this book, it played to my sense of curiosity and love of collecting things and the reasons for which we do.

Really interesting look at something I’d never thought about before! I enjoyed it.

Souvenir completely fit Object Lessons’ profile of being a series that “paints a picture of the world around us, and tells the story of how we got here, one object at a time.”

Besides the cover, what caught my attention was that the author was Rolf Potts, whose work I’m familiar with and have quite enjoyed. Souvenir did not disappoint. In a short, novella-length piece, Potts covered the history or souvenirs from religious relics to “13 tons of contraband Eiffel Tower kitsch!” which were confiscated by Parisian police. The way he looked at things such as a possibly authentic Shakespeare chair in a similar vein to the religious relics – who knew how many sets of a saint’s bones had been found-was fascinating.

I’d recently had a thought about some made in China souvenir I’d picked up and how souvenirs had, in some ways, lost their connection to what they depicted. But as he also addressed, the souvenir might be about the physical object, but it might be about the memory of where the object came from. I personally am more likely to keep the found items type of souvenirs: ticket stubs, museum brochures and the like, but there are items such as a flamenco poster from a 1996 trip to Spain that I remember the exact moment of purchase.

I liked how he traced the history of post cards, once called postal cards. They are, for me, the type of souvenir buying that has changed the most over time. At first, they were cheap and I enjoyed sending them to friends & family back home. Plus the photos they were with were much better than something I could take with a film or early digital camera. Then I wasn’t sending them as often and sometimes felt “I could take a better version of that photo”. Recently with the advent of drone photography, it’s back to “wow, I can’t get that photo”. I don’t always send them, but rather use them as photo memories of a trip. This is also true of items in a museum which maybe didn’t allow photography or the light was too dim to get a good one.

I also really liked how he used his own souvenirs to tell the broader story of what made a souvenir. These ranged from a “seashell” he collected on a trip where he first went to the beach as a child, to a fuse box pilfered from (and later returned to) a plane crash in Colorado as a teen, to theater masks collected while traveling in Asia. This also allowed him to explore the intersection between souvenirs, museum collections and the evolution of museums today, another area of personal interest to me.

All in all, a wonderful, quick read. I look forward to reading more in the Object Lessons series as I think this is a wonderful vehicle for exploring the everyday world.